Borchard, Peirce know Morro Bay well

Carla Borchard

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ELECTION2008

Race: Primary, Morro Bay City Council

Candidates: Jack Barrett, former Chamber of Commerce president; Carla Borchard, Morro Bay restaurant owner, former chamber president; Roger Ewing, retired retail manager; Bill Peirce, incumbent; Joey Racano, musician, writer, artist; Noah Smukler, chairman of Morro Bay chapter of Surfrider Foundation; Mick Theis, Morro Bay business owner; Andrew Wilkie, Atascadero High School teacher

Number of seats: 2

Term: 4 years

Monthly salary: $525

everal Morro Bay City Council candidates have solid ideas and impressive backgrounds, but we believe that incumbent Bill Peirce and longtime Morro Bay resident and business owner Carla Borchard are particularly well-qualified and deserving of your vote.

Peirce has served three terms on the City Council, and has experience with myriad issues, including cleaning up Morro Bay’s MTBE contamination, negotiations with Duke Energy and, of course, budget challenges.

He correctly points out that Morro Bay’s budget is healthy now —but he wants it to remain so in the years to come. We like his idea of forming a city/chamber committee to recruit businesses that would most benefit Morro Bay.

We believe that Borchard also knows the community well and understands the challenges it faces. Her involvement with the Chamber of Commerce, PTA, 4- H and other organizations gives her the leadership skills she needs to serve on the council. Yet as a newcomer to the City Council— and someone who takes issues with some of the city’s current practices — we think she would bring a valuable perspective to the city.

An example: Borchard criticizes the city for studying everything to death and then failing to follow through on the recommendations of the experts that it hires. She also faults the city for not doing enough long-term planning.

We agree that long-term planning is crucial for every city—especially in such financially challenging times — and we think Borchard’s vision, coupled with her practical business sense, would be a valuable addition.

We urge Morro Bay voters to elect Bill Peirce and Carla Borchard.